Hong Kong Stock Exchange to launch bitcoin and Ethereum price indices

They will provide a single benchmark price for crypto assets across time zones in Asia

28.10.2024 - 14:30

3 min

What’s new? The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) will launch a series of cryptocurrency indices on November 15. They will provide a single benchmark price for crypto assets such as bitcoin and Ethereum across time zones in Asia and provide “reliable benchmark for a fast-emerging asset class,” the exchange said in a statement. The new products include separate indices for the two largest cryptocurrencies by capitalization, as well as combined indices.

Press release

What else is known? Transparent and reliable real-time indices will meet the region's growing demand for this fast-growing asset class and enable investors to make informed investment decisions. This will contribute to the development of the virtual asset ecosystem and strengthen Hong Kong’s role as an international financial center, says HKEX CEO Bonnie Y Chan.

The indices will be based on trading volume-weighted daily prices collected from leading crypto exchanges and will be presented in US dollars. In addition, the index series will be managed by CCData, a UK-registered benchmark developer, and comply with EU regulatory requirements.

Bitcoin and Ethereum-based spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from local issuers began trading on the HKEX in April, with ETH ETFs launched here earlier than in the United States.

Nevertheless, interest in these products remains weak. The total daily trading volume of the three BTC ETFs on October 25 was $741 020. The local peak was reached on October 16 at $4,73 million.

Hong Kong authorities will introduce tax breaks on crypto investments for private funds

The Finance Minister noted that this step will stimulate the development of the digital asset market in the region

Earlier this month, Bybit, one of the leading centralized crypto exchanges (CEX), launched trading of stock market indices using USDT stablecoin. This includes China A50 Index Cash CFD, Dow Jones Index Cash CFD, NAS100 Cash, Nikkei Index Cash CFD, and Hang Seng Index Cash CFD.

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